Relay



Jan. 8, 1924. 1,480,276

. R. c. LEAKE RELAY Filed March 17, 1919 3 IZI/ENTORKM Arm/my weights orother biasin relays, especially those of the so-called rotor iiatented Jan. '8, 1924.

oNiTED STATES PATENT, OFFICE."

RICHARD C. LEAKE, or ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO GENERAL RAILWAYSIGNAL COMPANY, or ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION or NEW YORK.

REILLY.

Application filed. March 17, 1919. Serial No. 283,188.

.Monroe and State of New York, have in vented a new and usefulImprovement in Relays, of which the following is a specification.

. This invention relates to an improvement in the construction of relaysof the type commonly used in railway signaling systems.

, Relays of the construction commonly em-.

ployed-forrailway signaling have a tendency, when returning'to thebiased position uponbein deenergized,:to oscillate or bob somewhat:efore theparts of the relay movement come to. rest; This action appearsto be due to the inertia of the parts which cannot, of course, beimmediately brought to-rest after having'once set into motion by theinfluence of the Countermeans. In most type, Iattribute thisover-throwing or bobbing action principallyto the weight and inertia ofthe rotor or operating element; and the primary object of my inventionis to devise a simple, inexpensive, and efficient construction whichwill act to gradually bring to rest the rotor or other operating elementof the relay without affecting the Contact fingers and other connectedparts constituting the relay movement.

In the accompanying drawing I have illustrated one embodiment of myinvention; and other objects and advantages of .the invention willappear hereinafter during the description of the featuresofconstruction, functions and mode of operation of this specificembodiment.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be made to theaccompanying m drawing, in which like reference characters Fig. 3 is afragmentary enlarged longitudinal section through the rotor shaft andthe hub of the rotor, said section being taken on the line 33 in Fig. 2and looking in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Fig. 4 is a detail view of one of the friction washers constituting partof my invention; and

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 2 showing one of the intermediatepositions of the parts such as they may assume during the regularoperation.

I have illustrated the referred embodiment of the invention a apted to arotor type relay of well known construction. This relay comprises thefield elements F and F and a shell type rotor R, this construction beingsimilar to that shown and described in the patent to W; K. Howe, No.1,094,389, dated April 21, 1914. The rotor R which constitutes theopera-ting element of the relay, is operatively connected to a rotorshaft 1 by a device constructed in accordance with my invention andhereinafter explained. The rotor shaft 1 is supported in the usualway bysuitable bearings 2 at tached to the frame or supporting casing A of therelay, only-parts of this frame A be ing shown for sake of simplicity.On the rotor shaft 1 is fixed a pinion 3 which meshes with the teeth ona sector 4- and this sector at is fastened to a shaft 5 journaled insuitable bearings on the frame A- of the relay. Loosely mounted on theshaft 5 are ward movement of the outer weighted ends of these arms 6 and6 is limited by fixed stops, shown diagrammatically and designated 7 and7 these stops in practice being a part of the frame or casing for therelay. The sector 4 is securely fastened to a block 8 which has integrallugs or arms 9, (only one being shown), which extend parallel with shaft5 on opposite sides thereof and project under the weighted arms 6 and 6A link 10 is pivotally connected at its lower end to the block '8 at oneside of the axis of the shaft 5; and the upper end of said link ispivotally connected to the outer end of bracket on arm 11 fixed to acontact block 12. The contact block 12, which is made of suitableinsulating material, is provided with trunnion pins 13 which arejournaled in the upper ing part oil e frame or casing A of the lidrelay. A number of contact fingers 15, one being shown, are connected tothe contact block 12, and thesecontact fingers cooperate at l'lltllutter ends Wllll and upper and lower contacts or binding posts 16 and1.6 respectively. The construction of this relay movement just describedis similar to that shown and. described in the patent to W. K. Howe,1,019,047, dated March 5, 1912; and further explanation of the detailfeatures of this construction may he had by reference to this patent. I

This invention relates more particularly to the operative connectionbetween the rotor R and-the rotor shaft 1; and according to theinvention, this connection is such t atthe momentum of the rotor, whenthe re ay movement returns to the biased position, will be gradually.absorbed. In the specific embodim5ent of the invention illustrated,

the rotor R is provided with. a spider 1'? at one-end having an integralhub 18 loosely mounted on a rotor shaft 1 g and said hub 18 .has.diametrically opposite lugs 19 projecting 1 therefrom parallel with theshaft 1. Between these lugs 19 and the rotor. shaft 1 is interposed afriction clutch and lost-mo tion device, shown in detail in Fig. 3. Thisdevice comprises a metal washer 20 on the rotor shaft 1 which bearsagainst a circumferential shoulder on said shaft, as shown in Fig. 3.;and the hub 18 ofthe rotor B being loose on the rotor shaft 1, there isno appreciable friction between said hub and the washer 20. The washer20 has an inwardly projecting lip 21 integral therewith, (see Fig. 4),which fits in a longitudinal groove or keyway 22formed in the rotorshaft 1. Bearing againstthe outer face of i the washer 20 is a washer 23of fiber or simila material; and outside of this fiber washer 23 is thecoupling or driving member 24, which is loosely mounted on the rotorshaft 1 and is provided with outwardly extending arms arranged to engageopposite sides of the lugs 19- on the hub 18,

as shown in Fig. 2. Outside of the coupling member 24 is another fiberwasher 23 and then another metal washer 20; and "these between the rotorR and the rotor'shaft 1 which has the characteristics of a frictionclutch and a lost motion device.

T The parts of the relay are shown in Fig. 1 in the deenergizedcondition. Upon energization of the field windings E and F withalternating current having the proper phase position, enables themomentum of the ro-.

I enace upon the phaserelation of the currents in the windings F-and Fin accordance with the usual andwell-lmown operation of this type ofrelay. Assuming the rotor R to he rdtated' in' the counter-clockwisedirection, as viewedin Figs. 1 and 2, the lugs 19 on the hub 18 of saidrotor drive the arms 25 of the coupling element 24, which in turn causesrotation. of the rotor shaft 1, due to the friction between thecontacting surfaces of the two metal washers 20, the two fiber washers23, and the body portion of the coupling member 24. Thiscounterclockwise rotation of the rotor shaft'l drives the sector 4 inthe clockwise-direction, pulling down the linlr 10 and the arm 11 so asto rock the contact block 12 and move the contact finger 15 into contactwith the upper contact 16. During this movement the block 8 is rockedand one of its lugs 9 (not shown), raises the counterwei ht or weightedarm 6 The parts'of the re ay are now in-the energized condition. Duringthis operation the movement of the rotor Rand the parts operated therebyis comparatively quick in actual practice, and the friction clutchdevice previously described is employed so as to constitute ayieldableconnection between the rotor and its shaft 1, so that as the parts ofthe relay movement come. to rest in the picked-up or energized position,the rotor B may, if necessary, continue its rotation and overrunslightly in opposition to the friction developed by the friction clutchdevice. This slipping of the friction clutch, when the relay attains itsfully energized tor R to be gradually absorbed without his shock to; itor the other parts of the relay. movement. 1

Upon. .deenergization of the relay, which in practice is usuallydone byinterrupting the supply of alternating current to one of the fieldwindings, while continuing the sup-; ply of current to the other fieldwinding, sometimes termed the local winding, the parts of the relay arereturned to the biased position by the action of the counterweight 6This return mo vement drives the rotor shaft 1 and thejrotor R in theclockwise direction, as viewed in Figs. 1 and 2. When the sectorelattatins its middle position, as shown in Fig. 1, thezouter end of thecounterweight 6 strikes its stop 7 and is instantly brought to-rest; andany further movement of the sector 4 beyond this position must I raisethe opposite counterweight 6. 125

In practice the parts of the relay movement, consisting of thecontactblock 12 and its contact fingers, the sector 4, the links 19 and11, and associated parts, are made hf' light construction and it isfoundthat the relay movement do not acquire much mo'-- 1 this mass isdistributed at a distance from its shaft 1. Moreover, the rotor R movesmuch faster during the return movement than the other parts of .therelay movement. It would appear, therefore, that the overthrowing orbobbing occurring upon deenergization of relays of the usualconstruction is due principally to the momentum of the rotor.

According to my invention, the connection between the rotor R and itsshaft 1 is such as to permit the rotor, upon deenergization of therelay, to continue its movement after the shaft 1 stops, or in otherwords, be free to over-run said shaft. To explain more fully, referringto Fig. 2, upon deenergization of the relay, the shaft 1 is caused torotate by the counterweight 6 in. the clockwise direction. This shaft inturn drives the coupling member 24 through the tarding the movement 015the; rotor.

friction clutch, and the arms 25 carry with them the rotor; but when theshaft 1, and likewise the coupling member 24, comes to rest in themiddle or biased position of the relay movement, the rotor R maycontinue its clockwise movement. This further movement takes placeindependentl of the shaft 1, and may continue until t e other sides ofthe-lugs 19 on the hub 18.of said rotor engage the opposite sides of thearms 25, During such over-runnin of the rotor R, eddy currents areinduce in the rotor due to the influence of. the energized localwinding, and this remlts in gradually re- It is found in practice thatthis over=run of the rotor R is quick] stopped by the influence of thelocal win ing aided by the friction of the rotor on its shaft, so thatthe rotor rarel makes much more than a quarter of a .revo ution beforecoming to rest. Thus the rotor will be brought to rest at someintermediate point in its over-run, with the parts of the couplingdevice in the position like that shown in ig. 5. If desired, one of thelugs 19 and an arm 25 may be omitted, so that the rotor will be able tomake a greater free run before being re-coupled to the rotor relative inthe fie field windin shaft 1.-

If the relay is now reener d in the same way, as previously assume withthe same phase displacement of the currents d windings F aud F, therotor R has a free run in thecounterclockwise direction beforebeingcoupled to its shaft 1.

When the current is reversed in one of the so as to rotate the rotor Rin a clockwise 'rection, opposite to the direction previously assumed,the operation of the parts is similar to that already described and willbe readily apparent without fur ther explanation. Likewise, when thefield windings of the relay are supplied with alternating current of onephase relation, resulting in vpicking up the relay on one side, and thenthe current is reversed in one field winding so as to pick up the relayon the opposite side, substantially the same movement of parts takesplace, there being, however, no appreciable pause in the movement of theparts in the middle or deenergized position, since the rotor R is thenbeing driven under the influence of its field elements and makes itsfree run quickly.

From the foregoing it will be readil understood that my invention provies 9. simple and reliable construction permitting the rotor, or otheroperatin element, of a relay to be gradually broug t to rest upon deener'ization of the relay without causing bo bingor over-throwing. In asense, it may be said that my invention contemplates the separation ofthe rotor, or other operating element of the relays from the othermoving parts constituting the relay movement, and in absorbing themomentum of said rotor independently of the relay movement. In the caseof alternatin current relays having normally energize local windin themomentum of the rotor is absorbed dgy the braking action of the localwinding, aided by the friction between the rotor. and its shaft; butobviously, it falls within the scope of my invention to provide otherways of snubbing or braking the rotor. For example, the fiictionbetweenthe rotor and its shaft has been found to be suflicient to reducethe bobbing or over-throwing to a great extent. Also, while I haveilustrated m invention applied to a so-called three-pos tion relay, itis evident that the same idea, of means may be applied to a that variousmo ifications may be made in the shape and structure of the variousparts,

according to the type of relay used and the wishes of the designer,without departing from my invention.

What I claim is y 1 1. In an alternating current relay of the rotortype, the combination with a rotor shaft connected to the circuitcontrolling parts of the relay, of a coupling member connected to saidshaft by a friction connection and having an arm extendin radlally fromthe shaft, and a rotor oosely mounted on said shaft and having 8. lugarranged to engage said' arm, whereby the rotor may move reelyrelatively to the shaft to a limited extent in either direction and 1Sfrictionally connected to'said shaft at the limits of its frde movementsI 2. In a relay, circuit controlling means current motor including afield having oneelement normally energized and a rotor for causingoperation of said circuit controlling means from its biased position toan extreme operated position, and -means including va lost motion deviceoperatively connecting said rotor and said circuit controlling means andpermitting free relative movement thereof to a limited extent in eitherdirec tion, whereby upon return movement of said circuit controllingmeans to its biased position, the rotor may over-run and be graduallybrought to rest by the influence of, the field'element.

3. ln an alternating current relay of the rotor type,- the combinationwith ,a rotor shaftpositively connected to the circuit controlling'partsof the relay, of a coupling member frictionally connected to said shaftand having an arm extending. radially therefrom, and a rotor looselymounted on said shaftand having a lug arranged to engage the arm of saidcoupling member.

f. lln an alternating current relay of the atmotor type having a biasedrelay movement,

the combination with a rotor, of means operativ ely connecting the rotorand the relay movement and capable of permitting a free run of the rotorto a limited extent in either direction.

5. in .a relay of the rotor type, the com loination with a rotor and itsoperating shaft, of means operativel'y connecting said rotor and itsshaft and adapted t permit the rotor to move freely relatively to theshaft to a limited extent, whereby the rotor may over-run the shaft uponits return movement, and means whereby the rotor is brolr lot to rest. I

6. n a relay of the rotor type, the combination with a rotor and itsoperating shaft, a biased relay movement positively connected to saidshaft, field windings adapted if energized to cause rotation of saidrotor, of a friction clutch and lost motion connection between the rotorand the shaft for permitting free movement of the rotor relatively'tothe shaft to a limited extent, and for producing africtionalconnecinseam tion between the rotor and its shaft at thelimits of said free run, whereby the rotor may freely over-run theoperating shaft and the relay movement to a limited extent upondeenergization of the relay. a 7. In a relay of the rotor type, thecombination with the operating parts constituting the'relay movement, ofa rotor having a lost motion connection thereto which permits the rotorto turn freely with respect to said operating parts, andelectro-magnetic means for braking the rotor.

8. lo. an alternating current relay of the rotor type having two fieldelements, one of which remains energized when the parts of the relayassume their neutral or deenergized position, the combination with abiased relay movement, of a rotor adapted to freely over-run said relaymovement upon return thereof to the biased position, whereby upon adeenergization of the relay, the rotor is gradually brought to rest bythe influence of its local field element independently of the relaymovement.

. 9. In a relay, circuit controlling means and. associated operatingparts constituting a relay movement, means adapted when energized tocause operation of the relay movement and including a movable operatingelement, and a lost motion connection between said operating element andthe relay movement, which permits free movement of said operatingelement with respect to the other parts of the relay movement, and meansfor causing electro-magnetic brakin of said operating parts, wherebyupon eenergization of the relayfsaid operating element may continue itsmovement by itself and be brought to rest gradually while the parts ofthe relay movement stop in their biased position.

10. In a relay having biased contact devices and a movable element foroperating said devices, the combination with said movable element, ofmeans for bringing said element gradually to rest independently of thedevice operated thereby upon deenergization of the relay.

RICHARD C. LEAKE.

